More New Friends, A New Roof, and Conch Fritters!!!!!

Last month's Bahamas Habitat Fly In & Help Out Event was another huge success.   Most folks met up at Orlando Executive Airport (KORL) for lunch and then the mass departure for the Bahamas began!  Over 30 pilots and passengers in 8+ planes made the trip to serve the great people of Eleuthera, Bahamas.  The itinerary was the same as it had been for previous events.

This time I had two friends from church join me.  Both of them had never been in a small plane before, but that didn't damper their excitement.  A little over 2 hours after leaving Orlando, we were the first plane to touch down in Governor's Harbour (MYEM), Eleuthera.  We had loaded up the plane with various supplies that had been waiting to be delivered to the camp which almost turned into a little bit of an ordeal.  The customs officer, freshly transferred from Nassau, was very keen to ALL the boxes we had brought with us.  Luckily you are allowed a $100 exemption per person from import duties so we managed to write up an agreed upon manifest and kept it below that mark!

Odyssey Aviation, the local FBO at the airport, was gracious enough to meet all the pilots and crews with catered finger foods, drinks and gift bags for everyone upon arrival.  They also were generous to donate $3500 to the Zion's Children's Home on Current Island; a project hugely supported by the Bahamas Habitat.  So if you find yourself in the Bahamas and in need of FBO services, please give your patronage to Odyssey Aviation to show your thanks for their support of their communities.

This trip, we worked in the settlement of South Palmetto Point.  We served a nice older gentleman and his aunt as we repaid her roof, demolished the crumbling half of his house, and finished putting on a new roof on the remaining front half of his home.  We did this over two days and it's amazing what can be accomplished by so many in just a short time.

After working the 2nd day, a group of us headed for the airport for a little island hopping.  I let John and Doug take turns flying the plane and they did very well.  After a quick turn at North Eleuthera to load the fuel we needed to get home, we flew towards the Exuma Islands chain and stopped at Staniel Cay and walked to the yacht club for lunch.  Unlike last February, the power was on!  So we enjoyed a fabulous lunch and of course the obligatory conch fritters!

Sunday's flight home was none eventful.  The weather was perfect, clearing customs in Ft Pierce was painless as usual, and we were home in Jacksonville by early afternoon.  It was an amazing four days and I truly enjoyed see some familiar faces, making new friends, and sharing this experience with Doug and John.  The main conversation we had when we got home was,"When are we going back?"  Soon I hope!  The next event will be February 20- 23, 2014.  Mark you calendars and join us!

Here is a slide show of our photos.  It also includes some GoPro video while flying low along the beautiful islands of Exuma.

Staniel Cay, Bahamas - The Flight Home

We both got a great night's sleep and woke up around 7:30 am. After we took showers and had our morning coffee on the deck, we headed to the clubhouse for some breakfast. We realized that of all the pictures we had taken, we never got both of us in them at the same time. So we imposed on a few folks to help us right that wrong. Breakfast was great as usual, but I just wasn't very hungry. We checked out and settled up our account at the bar and got our bags ready to go. One huge benefit to flying yourself is only being held to your own schedule. Not having to feel rushed to get to the airport or anything else sure helps to alleviate a lot of stress. Leaving the Staniel Cay Yacht Club was tough, but we have to leave in order to come back!



It didn't take long to load and pre-flight the plane. We were wheels up shortly after 10:00 am. Some remnant clouds from the front made for a low overcast layer for about 40 miles, but we had another nice ride and a beautiful flight over the Exumas as we headed back for North Eleuthera (MYEH). We touched down at MYEH about 45 minutes after leaving Staniel Cay (MYES).








White Crown Aviation, the FBO at MYEH, made our departure from the islands a breeze. After submitting our Immigration Cards, Passports, General Declaration Form C7, Cruising Permit, and $15 Departure Tax each, we settled up our fuel bill and called to notify US Custom and Border Protection (CBP) of our flight. They said they had our eApis manifest on file and were cleared for arrival back into the US. I'd say we were completely cleared, fueled, and ready to go in less than 15 minutes. Awesome service! I also asked about their 100LL fuel availability and they told me it would be a very rare occurrence for them to not have fuel as you might find at other airports in the islands. That’s just another huge reason why North Eleuthera and White Crown Aviation make it a perfect stop when traveling to and from the Bahamas.



After a short run up we were back in the air and bound for Fort Pierce, FL (KFPR). Climbing through 6,000 feet, I contacted Miami Center and received our IFR clearance. We were cleared direct ANGEE intersection then direct KFPR at 8,000 feet. Pretty easy. The westerly winds we enjoyed on the way down were still there so those headwinds made for a little longer of a flight home. No worries though. We had beautiful scenery to look at and great music to enjoy while we trudged along. Our route took us just south of Great Abaco and Castaway Cay then east and north of Freeport. As we passed Castaway Cay, we could see the Disney cruise ship at the dock. Just after Freeport we descended to 6,000 feet and then were instructed to be at 4,000 feet 25 NM southeast of ANGEE. After ANGEE we were vectored around a bit for traffic, but in no time we landed at Fort Pierce and taxied to the CBP ramp to clear back into the USA.






After shutting down, we unloaded our baggage and proceeded in to the customs building. The CBP officer was very nice to work with and after checking our passports, Customs Declaration, and luggage, we were cleared and headed back to the ramp to reloaded the plane. We caught the attention of the line-guy from APP Jet Center, formerly Volo Air, and asked him to tow the plane over to there ramp and top it off with fuel. I was very surprised to see them so busy. It took us a while to get our fuel, but it gave me time to check the weather and file our flight plan for our final leg home to Jacksonville.



Forty-five minutes after arriving at KFPR, we were back in the air and headed home. I noticed the XM weather depicted an AIRMET Tango for moderate turbulence along our track once we reached the Space Coast area. Sometimes it's hit or miss if you feel the turbulence when those AIRMETs are issued and it was spot on this time. Although we probably experienced "light" turbulence by definition, the occasional moderate turbulence definitely gave us an interesting ride for about 45 minutes. I slowed to the indicated airspeed for maneuvering or turbulence, about 116 knots. Even though we maintained that indicated airspeed, our ground speed would vary between 105 and 135 knots as we encountered various up and down drafts. Anyway, the views of Florida were great and the Kennedy Space Center was especially clear as we went buy. About and hour and thirty minutes after leaving KFPR, were back on the ground at KCRG in Jacksonville.




Flight times for this trip:

Thursday, 22 April 2010: KCRG --> MYEH --> MYES = 3.9 hours
Tuesday, 27 April 2010: MYES --> MYEH --> KFPR --> KCRG = 5.3 hours

Boy that extra stop and those headwinds sure made a difference, but still way faster both times than if we had tried to do this via commercial airlines! Hmmmmmmmmm.................I wonder when we can go back?!?!?!?!?!?

Staniel Cay, Bahamas - Day Five

As predicted, the winds had increased and were now out of the west. We headed off for breakfast and found out that maybe around noon we might be able to take a boat out. The winds were forecasted to subside after lunch for a while before the front was expected to come through later in the day.

We decided to take it easy around the yacht club for the morning and enjoyed a hot lunch at the bar for a change. Just as it is for dinner, the portions are fit for a king! I had the Conch Bits with fries and Dad had their Club Sandwich with fries. Delicious! Just as we finished lunch we were told we could take a boat out for a bit, but to stay close. I asked what close was and they said Pipe Cay. Perfect! All we wanted was one more trip to the sandbar.



We arrived at the sandbar east of Little Pipe Cay in about 25 minutes and this time we made it at low tide. We set off looking for treasures, but couldn't help keeping an eye to the north as the sky was looking more and more threatening. We found a few treasures and another Helmet again, but not one we could take since the animal was still in it. Even though we had been keeping a good eye on the clouds, we both noticed the approaching weather was looking a little more ominous and we decided it was definitely time to go!


No sooner were we back in the boat heading south for Staniel Cay did the calm air turn to strong, cold winds leading from the frontal clouds. Our smooth ride was over and the real adventure began. We tried to stay in some of the protected areas, but had to transit some open areas to get back and with the increasing winds and strong opposing currents, the seas were getting angry!

Well it really wasn't that bad, but it sure seemed like it for a while. The Boston Whaler boat we had is unsinkable by design and let me just say we took on enough sea water to give the girl a good go. She preformed excellently and we trudged along safely making it back to the yacht club. My dad may be a retired Army land lubber, but he's a Salty Dog now! I unloaded the boat and dad went up to make sure we got our dinner order in on time. And since we just had quite an amazing little adventure, I suggested to Dad he might want to bring 2 large Rum Punches back from the bar! He graciously obliged. We finished our drinks and took it easy for the rest of the afternoon while we watched the rain and thunderstorms come through.



Our final dinner for our stay was fabulous as always. Dad just couldn't get enough of the lobster, but I decided to go with the steak again. The dining room was a little quieter that night since a lot of folks had left and many of the yachts had departed seeking more sheltered moorings. No worries though, it was a quiet rest of the evening and we enjoyed talking on the porch a little more and began packing for the following day's trip home. As with every night of our stay, I slept very well.